Genetics

The Asthma Origins Lab, under Dr. Esteban González Burchard, has assembled the largest genetic combined study of pediatric asthma in the world.

Over the past 12 years we have recruited over 9,000 Latino and African American children from throughout the mainland U.S., Puerto Rico, and Mexico. As part of our research to understand the importance of genetic and environmental factors, we have collected a broad spectrum of information on our study participants. Most individuals have genome-wide genotype data. Approximately 600 individuals also have genome-wide methyl typing. In addition, we have isolated RNA and serum on the individuals recruited in our largest studies, GALA II and SAGE II. We have also collected detailed phenotype information including spirometry, bronchodilator response, biomarkers such as nicotine metabolites and total IgE, skin prick tests for common allergens, detailed information on socioeconomic status (SES) and geocoded air pollution on most study participants (N ~ 6,000). More detail can be found at our lab website.

We collaborate with a diverse group of clinicians, bioinformaticians, epidemiologists, and basic scientists on a broad range of questions from pulmonology, to health disparities, to population genetics. In addition, we are affiliated with the NHLBI-funded EVE Asthma Genetics Consortium, a large multiethnic consortium seeking to characterize genetic risk factors across multiple populations.

Genetic Epidemoiology of Asthma & Drug Response

We have assembled the largest pediatric asthma genetic study of minority children in the U.S. We have recruited and phenotyped over 9,000 Latino and African American children from throughout the U.S. We have detailed phenotype information including spirometry, bronchodilator response, total IgE, skin prick testing, genome-wide data, detailed information on socioeconomic status (SES) and geocoded air pollution on most study participants. More detail can be found at here. We are aalso part of the National Asthma Genetics Consortium (EVE), and the Consortium on Asthma among African-ancestry Populations in the Americas (CAAPA).